SACRAMENTO, Calif. (Reuters) - Actors in adult films in California would be required to wear condoms during explicit sex scenes under a referendum that qualified for the November 2016 ballot on Wednesday.

The measure, based on a similar ballot initiative that passed in Los Angeles three years ago, is backed by the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, a healthcare and advocacy group devoted to preventing the spread of HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases.

California Secretary of State Alex Padilla said on Wednesday the organization had submitted more than enough valid signatures to get the measure before voters next year.

Michael Weinstein, president of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, said the group had submitted 557,136 signatures from Californians who wished to see the initiative on the ballot - about 185,000 more than necessary.

The organization has also submitted signatures for a ballot initiative aimed at holding down the cost of prescription drugs.

That measure, which is strongly opposed by the pharmaceutical industry, would require state agencies to pay no more for prescription medication than does the federal Veterans Administration, which negotiates aggressively with drug companies.